John McGrath spent his whole life campaigning for a popular theatre that was politically engaged, entertaining and relevant. His campaign took many forms, as a writer, director, and producer. Most famously he formed 7:84, a company named after the statistic that 7 per cent of the population of Britain owns 84 per cent of the nation's weath. He wrote and directed over sixty palys including The Cheviot, The Stag and the Black, Black Oil and Border Warfare. He died from leukaemia in January 2002.
A sunny September day. Heather Smithson, a senior MI5 controller, has a dilemma. Her job is on the line. She pauses in the sunshine to brood on recent events and what they mean in her life. Seattle, Genoa, New York: What is the battleground? Who is the enemy?
Hyperlynx was performed as a one act rehearsed reading at the Edinburgh Festival in August 2001. Its grim premonition of the terrorist activity of September 11th, necessitated that John McGrath wrote a second act. He completed the play in November before his death in January 2002.
Hyperlynx was the winner of the Fringe First Award, Edinburgh 2002